Everything you need to know about Chippendale furniture Everything you need to know about Chippendale furniture 1 comment Chippendale is a style of furniture that became popular towards the end of the 18th century, designed by English cabinet maker Thomas Chippendale – after whom the style is named. Chippendale furniture is as popular as ever today, helping people create a period elegance in their homes. If you want to learn more about the popular style of furniture and its origins, read on. Who was Thomas Chippendale? Thomas Chippendale was born in the early 1700s but little more is known of his early life until he married in 1748. A few years later, he moved to the edge of Covent Garden and set up home, as well as establishing workshops where he made furniture. In 1754, Chippendale published a collection of furniture designs called Gentleman and Cabinet-Maker’s Director, which was enormously well-received by the public at the time. He was elected to the Society of Arts in 1759 and partnered with upholsterer James Rannie for a number of years until Rannie’s death, when Chippendale recruited his clerk Thomas Haig.

Chippendale married again in 1777 after the death of his first wife in 1772, and died in 1779 from tuberculosis. Styles of Chippendale furniture The Chippendale style is often described as being an anglicised type of Rococo, and Rococo is one of the styles Chippendale encompasses, along with Gothic and Chinese. Rococo Chippendale furniture often displays French influence, with chairs based on Louis XV designs, although usually less ostentatious. The ribbonback chair with a broad seat and cupid’s bow-style back rail is perhaps the most famous Chippendale design. Gothic Chippendale furniture is characterised by s-shaped curves and pointed arches in the backs of chairs, while Gothic bookcases were triangular at the top and had wooden glazing bars to hold the glass in place. Chinese Chippendale creations often included cabinets and shelves for china, and typically features pagoda-style pediments and glazing bars arranged in a fretwork design. This fretwork was also used on the edges of tea tables and on the backs and legs of chairs, often coated with lacquer.

Modern Chippendale furniture Chippendale furniture continues to be popular in modern times as the furnishings are not only attractive and help to create an upmarket, classic feel in the home, they are also hardwearing and long-lasting. While original furniture from the 1700s is hard to come by – especially in a well-preserved form, you can invest in replica pieces made from solid mahogany that is virtually undetectable as a modern equivalent. Mahogany is a reddish-brown hardwood that is extremely durable and ideal for carving. It resists wood rot and can be transformed into items of furniture that, with little maintenance, will last for years. You’ll find bedside tables, writing desks and dressing tables among the Chippendale furniture available, and simply need to wipe the furnishings down with a damp cloth to remove dust that has settled. To keep your mahogany Chippendale furniture in good condition, avoid placing it near to sunlight, as this can cause the wood’s colour to fade. Similarly, furnishings should not stand near to radiators or fireplaces. Avoid placing hot dishes directly on your Chippendale furniture, and use coasters lined underneath with felt, as other materials may scratch or damage the wood.

You can also add extra shine to your furniture by giving it a regular polish when the pieces are beginning to look a little dull. Antique Mahogany Furniture An 18th century Chippendale mahogany chest of drawers. A walnut Queen Anne chair with a drop-in seat, urn-shaped solid back splat, ball and claw feet, and scallop shell carved knees. Wondering why some chairs have fluted, tapered legs, and others have bulbous, turned legs? Curious how types of wood are significant to carving style? Or how to tell a chair’s style just by looking at its back splat? Explore this guide to the Mahogany Period and browse One Kings Lane’s selection of antique mahogany furniture to get the look in your home. The furniture timeline is an interesting journey through history: it’s packed with pieces and styles, some named for monarchs, others named for designers—all of which tell a story about the world in which these craftsmen lived, what technology they had access to, and what their customers preferred. To make it easier to digest, historians have identified three major periods of furniture’s development: the Oak Period , the Walnut Period , and the Mahogany Period, breaking down the contributions of each.

Here’s a look at the furniture of “Age of the Designer,”—when mahogany opened up incredible new possibilities for Rococo carving, pattern books spread ideas across Europe, and discoveries of Greek and Roman antiquities would inspire an entirely new, historically accurate style.Head back to the Walnut Period , or further back to the Oak Period . Mahogany Period Overview A Sheraton-style writing desk. In 1773, the British government made a decision that would change the evolution of furniture design forever. A tax on imported wood was raised, making imported mahogany affordable for the first time. Craftsmen got the hang of the potential of this tropical hardwood, ambitiously covering pieces with ornamental carving and Rococo extravagance. Architects began to exert more influence on interior design, and with their priorities based around creating furniture that complemented new, neoclassical rooms, furniture design broke from the past. Often called “The Golden Age of Cabinetmaking,” it was a period when quality craftsmanship and impeccable style collided in an epic catalog of timeless designs.

Properties of Mahogany Timber Mahogany is classified as a tropical hardwood, meaning it’s got all the properties a tree needs to survive in warm, humid climates like Jamaica, Indonesia, and South America: it’s dense, resistant to humidity and wood rot, and extremely durable. Its grain is so straight and dense, it’s capable of standing up to intricate carving, piercing, and open fretwork that would otherwise render a wood brittle and weak. Thomas Chippendale stretched the limits of mahogany’s capabilities—but beyond that, much of the furniture produced in the late 1700s is very clean and solid. Mahogany holds nails and screws well, with a uniform grain and minimal blemishes that result in these pristine, polished pieces that lend themselves well to ormolu ornaments , brass hardware, and fancy pediments. Not to mention its rich, chocolate brown hues—making it an ideal surface for paneling, high-gloss polish, and decorative veneering. Famous nowadays for its use in musical instruments, mahogany changed the game for the decorative treatment of furniture. N.B. In the colonies, cherry was often substituted, nicknamed “New England Mahogany,” and satinwood and rosewood were frequent counterparts for mahogany.

New Furniture Pieces of the Mahogany Period A Sheraton-style four chair back settee. The linen press, or wardrobe/armoire: these deep pieces held lots, perfect for hanging garments, and featured upper, slide-out trays. Side tables exploded onto the scene in the Georgia era, with a table for almost every purpose—mainly a place to put dishes in dining rooms. Chippendale’s table designs included small, occasional tables, and the iconic tripod tables. Piecrust tables were elaborate tripod tables with scalloped edges. shaving stands and dressing tables the chaise longue evolved to a more upholstered, elongated armchair-style piece the sideboard ultimately evolved from the side table (which evolved from cupboard which evolved from buffet, which evolved from chest) and drawers and cupboards were added into its build under Hepplewhite and Sheraton. Adam-style sideboards were 3-piece units, with enormous pedestals on either end of the table with carved vases. Georgian beds were mostly all wood, like the old Jacobean carved bedsteads, but thanks to mahogany, they were lighter.

Chippendale’s towering four-poster bedsteads featured lots of exposed wood for a change; no longer the walnut creation that was totally covered in fabric, which wasn’t fashionable anymore. Sofas & Settees: Chippendale’s 2- and 3-chair back settees; Hepplewhite & Sheraton’s delicate chair-back settees; Chippendale camelback sofas and canapés; Louis XV Rococo settees and duchesses ; Louis XVI banquettes, settees, and sofas ; the Grecian couches of Thomas Hope Desks: made popular in the Walnut Period, with an increased in writing for recreation and correspondence, writing tables and bureaus remained popular, with secretaries falling a bit out of popularity. Bureaus with upper bookcases, barred doors, and pedimented tops; kneehole desks, sometimes with leather-covered tops—these featured blocky, solid bases, later tapering into long legs with Sheraton and Hepplewhite. Sheraton desks were known to feature hidden compartments and secret boxes that popped up on springs. Chests: simple mahogany chests of drawers; French, serpentine and bombé commodes ; tallboys.

Grandfather clocks Circular dining tables, some with removable leaves to adjust the size of the circumference. The bases were carved, decorative pedestals, some with lyre-shaped central columns that had brass rods as “strings.” Common Decorative Motifs, Techniques & Construction Chinese-style pierced fretwork on a Chippendale mahogany side chair. Carving reigned as the most important skill in the early Mahogany Period in England, but smoother surfaces would give way to the finest technique of the period: veneer. By layering veneers at right angles, craftsmen could reinforce the strength of the wood to stand up to the intricate carving seen in Chippendale’s “ribband-back” side chairs—even still, delicate pieces. With Neoclassical style , a resurgence in inlay would lead to more clean lines and subdued ornament, then the audacious Empire style would present its own interpretation on the classics. 1. mid-18th C French, 2. fluted column, 3. Klismos-style tapered splay, 4. Chinese fret-work on the Chippendale Marlboro, 5. straight tapered, 6. round tapered.

A mahogany Chippendale side chair with pierced back splat, squared front legs, and splayed back legs. legs and feet: cabriole legs with ball & claw feet; the new, straight Marlboro leg, sometimes fluted; or, straight and fretted; Adam legs were delicate and tapered; neoclassical saber legs. carving shifted from Rococo to classical: Chippendale’s acanthus leaf carving, cabochons, frets, eagle heads, claw feet; Hepplewhite’s less elaborate, more classic vases, festoons, draped cloth, swags of husks; Adam’s friezes, chains of husks, honeysuckle, Greek key, vases, drapery, and plaques with mythology and animals; Sheraton’s out-of-the-ordinary (and not too well-loved) naval motifs of anchors, lifebelts, ropes, and pulley blocks. Inlay and marquetry were revived in the Adam period, and inlaid cross-banding was the chief decorative treatment under Sheraton: satinwood, rosewood, tulip wood, ebony, and more.

pedimented, highly architectural furniture fretted and pierced chair splats: the use of the solid urn shape opened to a pierced, back while the top rail went from a hoop shape to a straight-across top rail. Delicate ladder back armchairs. Hepplewhite‘s shield-back, oval back, and hoop-back chairs ; Sheraton‘s love of turning and more squared-off, rectangular lines . Chippendale’s 3 iconic styles: Chinese influence, Rococo, and Gothic Revival wings were dropped from wing chairs, for more streamlined upholstered armchairs Gilding & veneers: veneers were used in a different way—not to conceal construction; instead, as a thicker piece meant for economizing materials, while allowing joints and construction to still show. Highly intricate fretwork was achieved by gluing pieces of veneer together so the grains were at right angles, which made cuts stronger. Hardware consisted of more simple, circular brass mounts, leaving behind the elaborate brass mounts of Rococo style; Sheraton hardware featured more classic ornament, lion’s heads with ring pulls in their jaws, and the beloved octagonal mount with handle.

FILED UNDER: Thomas Chippendale Style Furniture and Decor - Home Decor Home Decor > 18th Century Furniture > Thomas Chippendale Style Furniture and Decor Thomas Chippendale Style Furniture and Decor The Opulent Rococo-Style Furniture and Decor of Thomas Chippendale's The Gentleman & Cabinet-Maker's Director The Rococo Furniture of Thomas Chippendale A gilded, carved Thomas Chippendale mirror, a perfect example of the level of detail his pieces exhibited. Thomas Chippendale’s groundbreaking Rococo-style pierced mahogany side chair. A classic Chippendale upholstered sofa, with straight legs and rails, and gently curving arms. It’s a household name today: Thomas Chippendale . Known primarily for his iconic chairs —especially the mahogany dining chairs in the Chinese, Gothic and Rococo “ribband-back” styles—Chippendale ran a shop of skilled artisans in London and famously published The Gentleman & Cabinet-Maker’s Director, a complete catalog of every type of furniture. Although not the only top-notch designer in London at the time, Thomas Chippendale managed to achieve immortality—and have most of Mid-Georgian furniture attributed to his style—by being the first to publish a book of this magnitude.

Shop the iconic style of Thomas Chippendale at One Kings Lane. The book included plates of designs for: • four-poster carved and fabric-covered beds • consoles and tables • chairs , daybeds, sofas and upholstered settees • chair-back settees • commodes • sconces His mastery of “Gothic, Chinese and Modern Taste”—modern being his version of Rococo—was spread via his widely published pattern book, The Director. The book was filled with hundreds of ‘plates’ explaining the style and construction of various types of furniture, from mantels and bookcases to armchairs and his iconic camelback sofas. His fretwork is perhaps the most noticeable aspect of Chippendale designs—and the most copied today. Noting that books published on the subject of travel to China had increased interest in the Eastern style, and the popularity of Horace Walpole’s ‘Strawberry Hill Gothic,’ Chippendale fluidly incorporated both of these styles into his interpretation of Rococo—and the results were adored. Illustration of a classic Chippendale kneehole desk, with a detail of the batwing-style brass mounts. Note the lion’s paw feet and decorative aprons.

Entire books have been written studying the Chippendale library of design, but it is perhaps his dining chairs that are the most famous, and show the greatest breadth of his work. Read more about Thomas Chippendale’s famous dining chairs. Chippendale furniture is characterized by: • elaborate batwing brass mounts and hardware • dining chairs that immediately dropped the curve of the Queen Anne chair, with outward-flaring straight uprights and a separate, horizontal yoke top rail • his straight and tapered style legs, known as a Marlborough leg style leg (front legs only; the back two legs are almost always straight) • club feet, with a pad or base, or guttae feet (an ancient Roman ornament) • cane seats and ‘japanning’ Chippendale also made “French-style” upholstered armchairs, or fauteuils, a chair that never went out of style throughout the Georgian period, and was often heavily carved and gilded. Similarly, his daybeds were like long extensions of these seats. Chippendale Style in America (1750-1785) A modern, Chippendale-style camelback settee typical of the Federal Period in America.

Thomas Chippendale’s book was a chief source of information for American chair-makers. Rather than having to rely on importing chairs to understand the style, The Director gave them unparalleled instruction, and revved up American craftsmanship. American Chippendale chairs have wonderful proportion and lines, often use less carved ornament, and are clearly distinct from English Chippendale chairs. Regional distinctions showed through as well, as in American Queen Anne chairs , right down to which town or shop created which chair. Still, little is known of southern Chippendale designs, but Charleston was credited with a version that was unique, with gilded accents. Although Chippendale doesn’t make much reference to wood in his book, it’s clear through the intricate carving that mahogany was preferred. Mahogany wasn’t new in America, but its popular use with American Chippendale chairs nudged walnut out of the spotlight. In 1765, Mrs. Benjamin Franklin alluded to this trend, writing that she had moved her “old black walnut chairs” to a lesser-used bedroom. There was also only one instance of a claw-and-ball foot in The Director, but in America, it was a popular motif.

Rare, transitional chairs were created in the colonies, including interesting examples of side chairs with Chippendale-style top rails, but Queen Anne-style splats, or, conversely, cabriole legs and a curved back rail, but a splat with a pierced Chippendale design. Often, this mix of styles can be credited to the commissioner’s particular tastes, and showed that colonial craftsmen felt free to vary any aspects they wanted. Another American innovation was a Chippendale-style ladder-back chair—nothing seen in The Director, of course—that was used personally by a signer of the Declaration of Independence in his Maryland home. Gothic touches—a Chippendale sub-style—were also interpreted in America, and seen on the Speaker’s chair at Independence Hall. And Benjamin Franklin invented a Chippendale-style upholstered armchair with a seat that flipped down, transforming the chair into a ladder, to reach books in his library. Chippendale remained popular in America into the 1790s. The style survived both the American Revolution and the eventual political break with England, proving that its popularity outweighed its associations with English tastes.

Chippendale Furniture - 774 For Sale at 1stdibs Chippendale Furniture Dimensions: H 19.5 in. W 13.5 in. D 8 in. Dealer Location: San Francisco, CA Materials & Techniques: Maple Miniature American Chippendale Tiger Maple Chest-o... Antique Late 18th Century American Chippendale Models and Miniatures Maple A miniature American Chippendale tiger maple chest with two short over two long drawers mounted on a frame of a later date ending in cabriole legs with trifid feet. Chest, circa 1790. Dimensions: H 16.5 in. W 10.5 in. D 14.25 in. Dealer Location: Providence, RI Early Pair of Newport Fire Irons on Oversized Penn... Antique Mid-18th Century American Chippendale Andirons Brass This is a charming, small-scale pair of Newport andirons, which are in fine condition and of a desirable Classic form. For a later, more formal expression of this form, illustrated in T... Dimensions: H 20 in. W 36 in. D 16.5 in.

Dealer Location: Houston, TX Pair of Vintage Chippendale Benches by Baker Furni... Baker Furniture Company Late 20th Century American Chippendale Benches Upholstery, Wood Attractive Chippendale upholstered bench by Baker Furniture. Chippendale style fretwork legs with "H" stretcher in stained mahogany wood. Dimensions: H 39.25 in. W 34.75 in. D 20.5 in. Dealer Location: Providence, RI Chippendale Mahogany Block Front Bureau, Northampt... Antique Late 18th Century American Chippendale Commodes and Chests of Drawe... Mahogany Mahogany chests coming out of Connecticut are most rare and a block front at that is as rare as it gets. It’s small scale, i.e. 34” width make it very attractive and it makes a bold sta... Dimensions: H 30 in. W 20.5 in. D 20.5 in. Dealer Location: Kinderhook, NY English Mahogany Tripod Candle Stand or Tea Pot Ta...

Antique Late 18th Century English Chippendale Candle Stands Mahogany This English mahogany tripod candle stand or tea pot table is designed in the Chippendale style. It has a turned and dished top with a turned column base. It stands on cabriolet legs wi... Dimensions: H 38 in. W 22 in. D 20 in. Dealer Location: West Chester, PA Pair of Walnut Chippendale Chairs Unknown Antique Late 18th Century American Chippendale Side Chairs Excellent pair of walnut Chippendale side chairs. Nicely carved crest rail and Gothic splat, acanthus carved legs terminating in claw and ball feet. Dimensions: H 30.31 in. W 5 ft. 2.2 in. D 36.61 in. Dealer Location: Antwerp, BE Oak Chippendale Style Extending Dining Room Table Unknown Early 20th Century Italian Chippendale Tables Oak Dating from the early 20th century, resting on cabriole legs with claw and ball feet. Two extensions hidden under the plank-structured top. Total length extendable table 278 cm. Nor... Dimensions: H 40.25 in.

W 34.5 in. D 17.75 in. Dealer Location: Cleveland, OH 18th Century American Tiger Maple Slant Lid Desk Antique 18th Century American Chippendale Desks Maple Finely figured American tiger maple slant lid desk, original condition with minor restorations. From the Estate of F. Augustus, Cleveland, Ohio. Dimensions: H 39 in. W 24 in. D 23 in. Dealer Location: Kinderhook, NY English Mahogany Side Chair in the Style of Thomas... Antique 19th Century English Chippendale Side Chairs This graceful English side chair is in the style of Thomas Chippendale’s first period. The chair’s back has a unique curved shape with leaf and scroll carved crest. It has a wide comfor... Dimensions: H 30 in. W 46 in. D 38 in. Dealer Location: Big Flats, NY Materials & Techniques: Mahogany Chippendale Style Mahogany Game Table by Kittinger...

Kittinger Early 20th Century American Chippendale Game Tables Mahogany Kittinger mahogany game table features Classic Chippendale cabriole legs with carved shell knees terminating in claw and ball feet, signed, early 20th century. Top measures 38" x 23" (... Dimensions: H 37 in. W 20.5 in. D 21 in. Dealer Location: Kinderhook, NY English Mahogany Side Chair in the Chippendale Sty... Antique 19th Century English Chippendale Side Chairs Mahogany This handsome English side chair was designed in the Chippendale style. It has beautiful foliate carved crest and has an open interlaced carved splat. It stands on the traditional Chipp... Dimensions: H 38.5 in. W 20.5 in. D 24 in. Dealer Location: Kinderhook, NY English Mahogany Side Chair in the Chippendale Sty... Antique 19th Century English Chippendale Side Chairs Mahogany This handsome English side chair was designed in the Chippendale style. It has beautiful curved crest with rounded ears and has an open ribbon carved splat. It stands on the traditional...

Dimensions: H 6 ft. 7.5 in. W 40.5 in. D 21 in. Dealer Location: Providence, RI Chippendale Tiger Maple Desk with Bookcase, Newpor... Antique 1780s American Chippendale Secretaires We acquired this piece locally and not far away from Newport, its city of origin. This desk is in pristine condition. It has its original undisturbed brasses, locks, hinges, etc. and al... Dimensions: H 39 in. W 21 in. D 16 in. Dealer Location: London, GB 6 and 2 Victorian Chippendale Style Mahogany Dinin... Antique Late 19th Century English Chippendale Dining Room Chairs Mahogany A boldly carved set of 6 + 2 19th century Chippendale style mahogany dining chairs, having anthemion crested and acanthus carved top-rails with “shell” corners above pierced splats havi... Dimensions: H 37 in. W 30 in. D 18 in. Dealer Location: Witney, GB George III Period Mahogany and Inlaid Bonheur du J...

Antique 1770s British Chippendale Desks and Writing Tables Mahogany An exceptional George III period mahogany and inlaid Bonheur du Jour, the upper part fitted with two banks of five graduated drawers flanking a central tambour fronted cupboard all abov... Dimensions: H 38.98 in. W 28.74 in. D 20.87 in. Dealer Location: London, GB Fine Pair of Chippendale Mahogany Dining Chairs Antique 19th Century British Chippendale Dining Room Chairs A pair of 19th century Chippendale armchairs, the open carved splats with intertwined ribbons and foliage, the top rails with acanthus leaves and scrolls, the exaggerated arms sweeping ... Dimensions: H 40 in. W 23 in. D 20 in. Dealer Location: Debenham, GB Set of Ten 19th Century Carved Swedish Birch Chipp... Antique Late 19th Century European Chippendale Dining Room Chairs Birch Set of Swedish birch Chippendale inspired dining chairs, circa 1890. Comprising of six single and two armchairs.

Pierced and carved back rests, carved and shaped scrolling arms. Dark... Dimensions: W 2 ft. 8 in. L 4 ft. 10 in. Dealer Location: Potters Bar, GB Carved Gilt Chippendale Pier Mirror Glass English ... Vintage 1980s Chippendale Pier Mirrors and Console Mirrors Wonderfully intricate English Chippendale style pier mirror. Just look at that gorgeous frame adorned with birds and floral motifs. Glass is clear and blemish free. Such a good look ... Chippendale--The Royalty of Antique Furniture The Early Years But in 1754, Mr. Chippendale, as he was known in London, published his detailed collection, Gentleman and Cabinet-Maker's Director, a portfolio of fashionable English furniture design templates and one of the first furniture design books. In it Chippendale adapted existing design styles to the fashion of the mid-18th century. Both makers and sellers of furniture rushed to purchase it, making Chippendale a household name. And so pervasive was the influence of his book that the name of Chippendale is often indiscriminately applied to all mid-18th century furniture.

Chippendale created his Director as a catalogue from which his wealthy patrons could choose particular elements for their furniture, which would then be custom made for them in his workshop. It contained 161 plates, reflecting many elements of the Rococo, Chinese, Gothic and Neoclassical styles. Publication of the Director clearly had a stimulating effect on Chippendaleï¿½s career since all his known commissions date from after its publication. However, the Chippendale style didnï¿½t remain within the confines of the Chippendale workshops very long. So popular were the designs with the wealthy class that soon other furniture makers were using Gentleman and Cabinet-Makerï¿½s Director as a pattern book for their shops, too. In 1754, the same year as the publication of his Director, Chippendale moved to spacious premises in the fashionable paved thoroughfare of St. Martinï¿½s Lane which his firm occupied for the next 60 years. He then formed a partnership with James Rannie, a Scottish merchant, who injected capital into the business. They employed between 40 and 50 artisans.

And while the notes in his Director showed Chippendale possessed a sound practical knowledge of timbers and craftsmanship, he most likely, at this stage in his career, would have been responsible for design and management, instead of working at the bench. A versatile man, he was willing to design and supply wallpapers, carpets, fire grates, decorative ormolu, chimney pieces, even complete room schemes, in addition to furniture. As well as equipping State Apartments with luxurious ensembles, his firm regularly supplied routine articles for the servantsï¿½ rooms and domestic offices. He offered a complete house furnishing service, undertook repairs, removals, hired out furniture, compiled inventories and was even prepared to direct and furnish funerals for respected customers. Fine Woods Make the Difference Chippendale style furniture was generally made of mahogany, imported from the West Indies. Though cabinetmakers occasionally used veneers, theyï¿½re not typical of this style. Instead they preferred using solid wood to accommodate the elaborate carving found in this style. And they upholstered the newly introduced camel-back sofas in rich brocades, velvets, and damasks.

While cabinetmakers used Cuban, Dominican and Honduran mahogany during the latter part of the 18th Century, the finest was Cuban, a dense, heavy wood with a close grain. When they carved it, minute white flecks would appear in the wood. Honduran mahogany is lighter in weight and color. The mahoganies from the Dominican Republic and Jamaica fell somewhere between Cuban and Honduran in quality. Flame mahogany refers to the character of the grain, obtained by using the first branch or crotch of the tree. Another much sought-after grain was mottled, often referred to as "plum pudding" mahogany. Nevertheless, in the Chippendale period in America, Connecticut cabinetmakers used cherry more often than mahogany. During the same period, furniture makers in Bermuda used local cedar which had an orangish hue. Throughout America, furniture makers used softwoods like white pine for the main carcase of furniture, but in England, they favored hardwood such as oak. By mixing and melding the extravagant Rococo style with the Gothic and Chinese styles, Chippendale came up with a hybrid that displaced the more angular Queen Anne style.

From the 1760's, the neoclassical work of architect Robert Adam, with whom he worked on several large projects, influenced him greatly. Chippendale's Signature Formï¿½The Cabriole Leg He extensively employed the Queen Anne-style cabriole leg. While there are six different basic Chippendale style legsï¿½the lionï¿½s paw, the ball and claw, the late Chippendale, the Marlborough, the club and the spadeï¿½he based three of them on the cabriole shape which is an elegant, serpentine style ending in a distinctive foot. These include the lionï¿½s paw, which ends with a lion paw shaped foot, the club, which is a simple round foot and the ball and claw, which looks like an eagle talon holding a ball. The remaining leg styles are straightï¿½the Marlborough being a plain, square leg, the spade a tapered round leg often with a square or trapezoid foot, and the late Chippendale having a square leg with a square foot.

Chippendaleï¿½s Gothic and Chinese influenced designs had straight or tapering legs, tracery carving and fret and lattice work. Block-front furnitureï¿½where the center front recedes in a shallow concave curve between slightly convex endsï¿½seems to have been unique to North America. Chippendale never illustrated furniture of this type in his Director. Furniture connoisseurs believe that this style originated the area of Boston, Massachusetts, and assumed a Chippendale character. Another characteristically American furniture form was the highboy. English cabinetmakers abandoned the chest-on-stand, of the late 17th and early 18th centuries, for the chest-on-chest where the lower section is supported on low bracket feet. Furniture makers supported the highboy, known back then as a high chest of drawers, on high cabriole legs, the top being surmounted by a swan-neck broken pediment sometimes known in America as a "bonnet." The center of the pediment was usually embellished with a cartouche showing the familyï¿½s crest, except in American pieces this is smaller.

It was customary to display these elaborately carved pieces in the drawing room, even though they were designed to hold personal belongings. The lowboy, or the lower part of the highboy, was usually elaborately embellished with carving and sometimes stood by itself. Chippendale chairs often exhibit features of Queen Anne or early Georgian furniture. Often, American Chippendale chairs had Queen Anne back-splats or kidney-shaped seats. American cabinetmakers used doweled through tenon construction, even in sophisticated furniture, up to the late 18th century. In England this feature had died out in all but country furniture by the early 18th century. Of course, there are exceptions, so that identification is dependent upon more subtle points such as the less extreme line of the American back leg as compared with the English examples which are less vertical. However, in America, cabriole legs tended to be somewhat curlier than in England. Chinese Chippendale Another style of furnishing thatï¿½s often associated with the name of Chippendale is the so-called "Chinese Chippendale" or Chinoiserie, which remained immensely popular, especially for bedrooms, despite the rise of Neoclassicism.

Japanning, or painted decoration sometimes imitating lacquer, became the last word in chic. While he based his work upon the general Queen Anne and Georgian characteristics of sober design and thoroughly fine construction, retaining many of the early 18th-century details, Chippendale introduced many other forms. Though collectors identify his name with the extensive variety of chair designsï¿½from geometrical to Chinese, lattice, or sumptuously carved and interlaced forms, his workshopï¿½s output also included desks, mirror frames, hanging bookshelves, settees, china cabinets and bookcasesï¿½featuring fretted cornices and latticework glazed doorsï¿½and tables with delicately fretted galleries and distinctive cluster-column legs of Gothic inspiration. Noted Makers of Chippendale Furniture Records dating from before the American Revolution prove that there were many skilled craftsmen in the country. In Boston, for example, there were 150 known cabinetmakers, while Philadelphia had equally as many. In the South, craftsmen-slaves produced good work. Itï¿½s not surprising, therefore, to discover that many of the cabinetmakers who produced American Chippendale furniture werenï¿½t of British descent.

George Gostelowe who worked in Philadelphia was Swedish while Andrew Gautier was a Huguenot. Some of the most remarkable makers of Chippendale furniture were Quakers, for example the Goddards and the Townsends of Newport, Rhode Island Island, and William Savery of Philadelphia, Pennyslvania. In the history of American colonial furniture, the Townsends and the Goddards are truly remarkable for the quality of their work and for the number of them of different generations who made furnitureï¿½altogether some 20 individuals from three generations of the Townsends, including Christopher and his sons John and Job and his grandsons Job junior and Edmund were well known, while of the Goddards the best known was John. Reproductions It was the practice in the mid-18th Century to purchase a finely made piece of furniture or decorative object and then have copies made at a lower price to increase its number. These, as with modern reproductions, of the Chippendale style were often hand carved but donï¿½t have the depth and detail of carving that genuine Chippendale furniture has.

Nye recommended that collectors look for evidence of craftsmanshipï¿½hand planing, hand sawing, handmade nails, as well as shrinkage in the wood. In addition, reproduction pieces will have been constructed of younger mahogany which isnï¿½t as dense and is grainier than the slow-growth wood used to make 18th-century pieces. High Prices for Quality Thomas Chippendale, whoï¿½s furniture designs today command stratospheric prices, had to, on more than one occasion, fight for payment on his commissions. Today, collectors should be wary of any piece of Chippendale furniture that doesnï¿½t have a four to six-figure price tag, especially for pieces made in Philadelphia, according to Nye. "If itï¿½s not appropriately priced, the dealer knows that itï¿½s not 18th century," said Nye. "A reputable dealer will give a written guarantee that the piece is authentic and the guarantee will include a detailed description of the piece and its provenance.

Watch out for the ï¿½too-good-to-be-trueï¿½ price." Nye also noted that while the market is strong for exceptional items, many Chippendale pieces are undocumented and unsigned, so collectors need to look at form and aesthetic attributes. "Many American cabinetmakers borrowed liberally from Chippendaleï¿½s designs, so their pieces werenï¿½t as pure as English ones," he added. The Chippendale Society, founded in England in 1963, owns an important collection of furniture and documents, usually on display at Temple Newsam House, Leeds, England. What Are the Identifying Marks of Chippendale Furniture? | Home Guides | SF Gate What Are the Identifying Marks of Chippendale Furniture? What Are the Identifying Marks of Chippendale Furniture? Look for specific details to avoid poor reproductions of Chippendale furniture. Unless you are a collector with money to invest, it is highly unlikely that an original piece of furniture from 18th century English cabinetmaker Thomas Chippendale is in your budget, as a single piece can command up to six figures.

Chippendale's furniture became so well-known during his lifetime that they named the style after him, a first in English history, as furniture styles typically took on the name of the reigning monarch. Furniture is still made in this style today, but identifying its specific characteristics can help you distinguish quality reproductions from cheap ones. And once you learn them, if you get lucky, you might even find an 18th century American-made piece -- which is also highly collectible. Great Legs An exquisitely carved cabriole leg -- a serpentine-shaped leg in the Queen Anne style -- represents the signature hallmark of Chippendale chair and table legs. But there are three different cabriole leg styles, each ending in a distinctive foot: the ball and claw, the lion's paw and the simpler round club-type foot. Straight legs include the Marlborough, which is a plain square leg, and the spade, a tapered leg with a small four-sided foot. Late in the Chippendale period, another straight leg with a block foot appeared. This leg, along with an ogee bracket foot on chests -- where the outside edges form a gentle S-curve -- hints at a Chinese influence.

Woods and Details Quality woods -- such as mahogany imported from the West Indies -- could support the elaborate hand-carved details in furniture made in the Chippendale style. Veneers were seldom used. During the American Chippendale period, furniture and cabinetmakers typically chose cherry wood. Ornamental motifs on Chippendale furniture include acanthus leaves, C-scrolls, scallop shells and rosettes and fluting, which reflect Neoclassical and European influences. Craftsmen in both countries used other native woods late in the Chippendale period. Mahogany and cherry remain the choice today for fine reproductions, but you may find veneers applied to other woods in cheaper pieces. Forms and Shapes Both English and American furniture makers produced Chippendale-style chests of drawers, high chests, bureau or dressing tables, desks, tall clock cases -- grandfather clocks -- and gaming and dining tables. Pediments and finials graced the tops of tall pieces. Armchairs and side chairs became known for intricately carved or pierced-splat designs in their backs. Specific shapes of furniture pieces varied between the two countries as well as different regions of the American colonies.

In New England, chairs often had stretchers between the legs, and case furniture such a bureau chests had concave or convex front panels known as blocking. Curve-sided bombe chests were mainly produced in Boston. Notes for Novice Collectors Thomas Chippendale did not use a maker's mark, so verifying the item as being made by him or his craftsmen in England requires original documentation or a professional assessment. Most of Chippendale's original pieces featured some irregularities because they were completely handmade. Carvings from one side of a piece to the other will not match exactly. Joints are irregular and often display tool marks. When used, nails were handmade. Carved motifs were applied with pegs. Hardware pulls reflect the batwing design and should exhibit patina. Sofas are rare but have a camel back. Highly collectible and sought after, Chippendale-style furniture made in America during the period from cabinetmakers in Boston and Philadelphia to Charleston produced furniture that exhibit the same characteristics as original Chippendale pieces. The Preppy Times: How to identify Chippendale furniture and a little about the man who started the Chippendale style.

Pages Celebrating the Preppy Lifestyle and it's sensibilities How to identify Chippendale furniture and a little about the man who started the Chippendale style. Thomas Chippendale was a furniture maker of the mid to late 18th century. He was probably born in 1718 but there is no record of his birth, only his baptism in that year. He was the son of an Otley, Yorkshire, England carpenter and most likely an apprentice to his father. There are no records of his early life and training but by 1753 he was established in London as a furniture maker. In 1754 he published the first of three editions of his Gentleman and Cabinet-Maker's Director, a catalogue of English furniture design. This book is probably the major reason he is one of the world's best-known furniture makers ever. The description Chippendale has been applied to much of the well-made, English furniture of the 18th century. This is not because the furniture was made by Thomas Chippendale or his factory but because the word Chippendale has become synonymous with a distinguishable style.

Surviving furniture actually made by Thomas Chippendale would be rare to the extreme and would require a verifiable provenance. Gentleman and Cabinet-Maker's Director is the picture book of the Chippendale style. This catalogue allowed wealthy patrons to pick out particular elements for their furniture and the furniture would then be custom made for them by the Chippendale workshop. The Chippendale style reflected many elements of the Rococo, Chinese, Gothic and, later, the Neoclassical styles. The Chippendale style didn't remain within the confines of the Chippendale workshops very long. So popular were the designs with the wealthy class of the mid-18th century that soon other furniture makers were using Gentleman and Cabinet-Maker's Director as a pattern book for their shops, too. The patterns were not really entirely the creation of Thomas Chippendale, but improved, stylized or modernized versions of popular existing patterns. When we talk about Chippendale furniture today, what we are really talking about is well-constructed, mid- to late-18th century furniture of the Chippendale style. Wood used in this style of furniture was generally mahogany.

Though veneers were used for furniture of this period, they are not typical of the Chippendale style. Solid wood was used to accommodate the elaborate carving found in this style. Modern reproductions of the Chippendale style will often be hand carved but will not have the depth and detail of carving that genuine 18th century furniture has. Another feature of 18th century wood furniture is its irregularity. All the work on this furniture was done by hand and often quite exquisitely. However, handwork, no matter how well done, will not be able to match the exact regularity of machine work. When you examine a piece of wood furniture for the purpose of determining its age, look at the joinery closely. It will reveal a lot about the history of the piece. Hand crafted joints will be slightly irregular and may evidence tool marks, too. Finishes on wood furniture can help reveal its age, too. Many techniques exist to falsely age or distress finishes and unscrupulous furniture forgers use them so don't rely on the appearance of a finish alone to judge the age of a piece of furniture. With age, wood takes on what is called a patina.

Patina is the warm, mellow, aged look that wood gets from being touched, lived with, polished and cared for. It's something you must see to appreciate. It takes study to understand the different kinds of patination that different woods take on over time. If you intend to invest money in antique furniture, you must spend time learning about the kind of furniture you intend to buy. Local museums are a great place to start. They give you a wonderful opportunity to study authentic antique period furniture and patination up close. If what you are after is finding a nice, 18th century Chippendale style chair, you must learn the anatomy of a Chippendale style chair. The legs of an antique chair are revealing. There are six different basic Chippendale style legs. These are the lion's paw, the ball and claw, the late Chippendale, the Marlborough, the club and the spade. Picture books will give you an idea what each looks like but three of the styles are based on the cabriole shape which is an elegant, serpentine style ending in a distinctive foot.

These include the lion's paw, which ends with a lion paw shaped foot, the club, which is a simple round foot and the ball and claw, which (not surprisingly) looks like a claw holding a ball. The remaining leg styles are straight with the Marlborough being a plain, square leg; the spade a tapered round leg often with a square or trapezoid foot and the late Chippendale having a square leg with a square foot. There are many variations on the basic leg styles but close observation will reveal the basic pattern. If carving is present, and it most likely will be to some degree, it will be detailed and deeply cut. Leg joints will be precisely done with evidence of handwork. Check for repairs where the leg and seat frame meet. Sometimes, chair legs will have been cut down at the bottom to a shorter stature and this lessens the value of the chair. Stretchers are the horizontal rungs between chair legs. They are sometimes present in Chippendale style chairs. These, too, will be well joined, show evidence of handwork and will often be carved. Seats on Chippendale style chairs may be wood, upholstered or caned.

One way to check if the upholstery is original is to look at the way it is attached. Are other holes present that would indicate previous upholstery? New upholstery can easily hide holes so don't rely on this method entirely. A textile specialist can determine if the fabric is right for the period, too. Where the legs meet the seat, there will generally be supports called glue blocks. These may have been replaced during the life of the chair, check to see how they are joined. The chair backs will vary by the intended purpose of the chair. There are upholstered backs, rail backs, ladder backs, rung backs, splat backs, carved backs and in the case of stools and window seats, no backs. Look for the same kind of quality in the backs that you expect in the rest of the chair. Carvings will be deep, crisp and detailed. Often there will be piercing, where the solid wood has been pierced through as part of the back detail. One popular splat (back support) type is the lyre shape. Joinery will be well done and show evidence of handwork.

There are many variations on the Chippendale theme but one thing you can be sure of is that if you find a genuine 18th century Chippendale style chair in an antique shop, you are going to pay thousands of dollars for it. If it's not appropriately priced, the dealer knows that it's not 18th century. Take great care in purchasing antiques of this quality and expense. A reputable dealer will give you a written guarantee that the piece is authentic and the guarantee will include a detailed description of the piece and its provenance. If your budget is modest but your taste is expensive, you can buy very fine quality modern reproduction Chippendale style chairs that will appreciate in value over the years. As with any major investment, though, know exactly what you are buying before you write the check. Happy hunting for that perfect chair :) - Posted using BlogPress

Question: Which wood was the one mainly used by Thomas Chippendale?
Answer: MAHOGANY